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PSC 261 Scope and Methods of Political Science

What do political scientists know and how do they know it? This course focuses on the nature of political science as a discipline, the range and kinds of questions it addresses, and the methods and techniques by which it seeks answers to those questions. We will use examples from U.S., comparative, and international politics to examine the scope of the political science discipline and the different approaches we take to answering important questions about how and why political systems work as they do. We will also survey some of the basic statistical techniques employed in systematic studies of politics and government. This course is strongly recommended for sophomores planning to major in political science. This course is offered in the fall semester, 2011-2012. PSC 261 may require one lab session per week.